One night ago.
Aman looked at the papers on his desk. Ela was still asleep. He needed to finish reading this. The latest post had arrived from San Antonio. He sat there, carefully going over the notices he'd been sent. An hour later he sat back, pondering over the information he'd received.
The railway was coming to town. Washington and Austin had okay'ed it.
Circle-R and Box-Lightning stood in its way. Mostly it was Box-Lightning.
He was almost sure that both Arnav and Shashi were unaware of this development. Arnav had been away. Maybe he'd heard something in Fort Worth. He should meet up with him and see what he knew. But what would be the repercussions on the two ranches?
And then there was Shyam Manohar Jha. For some reason, Aman found the man ... a little ... unnerving. There was something about him that put him off. He was unfailingly polite, and had never done anything outside the law. At least, not that he knew of. Which was odd, given the kind of company he hired. Those men were guns for hire. He was sure of it. But they hadn't done anything for him to put them away, much as he would like to. Chasing Miss Gupta was their only crime as far as he was aware.
He sighed. Tomorrow was the betrothal celebration of Miss Anjali Raizada and Mr Shyam Jha. He wondered how Arnav felt about it. Well, we'll see how it all falls into place, he thought, a niggling thought flitting on the edge of his mind.
****
... At the Celebration.
Arnav opened his eyes. He was standing at the window, looking down at the celebration, still in full swing. Khushi's words had sent his mind spinning. He didn't know what to make of what she'd told him. There was only one pair of hands that he knew that wore with a Navajo bracelet.
If what she was saying was true ... then, his sister was engaged to her husband's killer.
If on the other hand, she was mistaken ...
... Could she be mistaken?
After all, as far as he knew, Khushi hadn't even met Shyam yet - at least not at the Circle-R.
If she had met him, she would have known exactly who she was talking about.
But...
... She'd come to him about Donny's murderer.
She'd thought that Shyam was a friend of his.
She'd said she'd seen him in the bar with him.
Her only link to Shyam was through him.
There had been no mention of Anjali.
He leaned his head against the window frame, holding her tight in his arms. He was torn. How was he supposed to tell his sister that the man she was engaged to, was probably the same person who shot her husband?
Khushi leaned back, looking up into his face. His grip was uncomfortably tight. She looked at the tears in the corners of his eyes, the haunted look in their depths, as he gazed into the distance.
'Arnav?' she called softly, her palm soft against his cheek. She could see the pain in his eyes, as he turned towards her. 'I'm sorry,' she said inadequately.
'So'm I,'he whispered. Cradling her head in his large hand, he hugged her close. 'Khushi, are you absolutely sure about this?'
She nodded without hesitation. 'Yes,' her voice was muffled against his chest. Suddenly a thought struck her. She pulled back. 'How do you know him, Arnav? Who is he?'
He shut his eyes tight, not wanting to answer that question. At least, not until he'd sorted his own head out himself.
A knock on the door.
He was relieved at the reprieve. He needed time. Time to think through his best course of action.
'Hold on, shi'aad,' kissing her forehead. Setting her gently away from him, he walked to the door and opened it.
Aman stood in the doorway.
'Sheriff,'Arnav raised an eyebrow, trying to appear calm and collected in front of him. He pulled the door open wider inviting his visitor in.
Aman stepped in before he noticed Khushi standing near the window. He looked from one to the other. There was tension in the room. He could smell it, but he wasn't sure what the reason for their tension was. He could barely make out Khushi's expression, as ASR had left only a couple of small lamps lit. Seeing the tension lines in Khushi's figure he wondered if he'd interrupted something.
But that wasn't why he was here, though.
'ASR, I'm sorry if I disturbed you. Miss Gupta,' he bowed to her.
She dropped a short curtsey. 'It's no hardship, Sheriff,' she walked over to them. 'I'll bid you goodnight.'
Arnav's eyes met hers for a moment. Wait for me, they said. She nodded briefly as she stepped out of the room.
'I'll be right down,' he told her, shutting the door.
Aman moved into the room and turned to Arnav, who went over to pull out his stash of whiskey. He needed it!
Arnav poured two fingers of whiskey into two squat tumblers, holding one out to Aman. He was still thinking about what Khushi had told him, but he was also wondering what Aman wanted with him.
'So. Congratulations!'Aman lifted his glass in a toast.
Arnav nodded acknowledging him, lifting his glass as well, not quite knowing what to say. 'What brings you up here?' he was curious.
'I wanted to know if you'd be coming in to Yerba tomorrow,'Aman replied.
Arnav was puzzled. He frowned. 'Why? Anything special?'
'The news from the East is interesting,' Aman spoke into his glass, before taking a sip.
Arnav looked at him over his glass, his eyes narrowed. 'All right,'he knew Aman wouldn't open up if he'd decided not to.
'Any reason why you can't tell me now?' Arnav's interest was piqued.
Aman shook his head, 'I'd rather not be interrupted,' he paused. 'Or overheard.'
Arnav acknowledged the truth of that statement, with a short nod. What he had to tell Aman also needed to be said away from the Circle-R. Besides he still needed to confirm from Khushi that it was indeed Shyam that she was speaking of.
'Something wrong?' Aman asked, watching ASR twirl the whisky in his glass without touching it, his thoughts far away.
His eyes flicked up to Aman's at the question. He shook his head, 'nothing. You're right, let's talk tomorrow at your office.'
Aman finished his drink, and stood up, setting the tumbler down on the desk. 'I'll be off, then, ASR. Thanks.'
The two men headed downstairs. The celebration had started winding down and people were already leaving. Arnav searched the crowd trying to spot his bright yellow flower. She was standing at one side with Payal and Ela smiling at something Payal was saying. He watched the sisters hugging Ela before moving towards their parents.
A hand touched his shoulder, he turned around. Nanny. She was smiling at him, her eyes glittering with happiness. He put an arm around her, unable to speak through the lump in his throat.
*****
The night was almost over. Most of the guests had departed. The Guptas were getting ready to leave. They were all milling around in the parlor, when Nanny said graciously, 'it's been a wonderful evening, Mr. Shashi. I thank you all for coming.'
Shashi bowed his head, smiling. 'It was our pleasure, Miz Raizada,' he said. 'Come Garima, we should wish them a good night.'
Khushi's eyes were searching for Arnav. She hadn't seen him since she'd left him with Aman. She didn't know what he planned to do with what she'd told him. Anjali followed her restless eyes and asked, 'are you looking for something, Miss Khushi?'
'No,' she hesitated, then decided not to say anything. She had to trust Arnav in this. They needed to finish their conversation. 'I ...,' she began and then spotted Arnav coming down the stairs. His eyes searched for hers, and then held them, a small smirk on his face.
Anjali turned to watch her brother come down the stairs, his attention on Khushi and solely on her. She looked from one to the other. What Shyam had said earlier in the evening ran through her head. He wasn't wrong. She smiled slyly and said, 'you were saying something, Miss Khushi?'
Khushi dragged reluctant eyes back to her, 'no,' she sounded dazed. 'No.' A little stronger this time. 'Actually I didn't get to meet your betrothed at all, Miss Anjali!' she reached out a hand to touch Anjali's.
Anjali was surprised. In all the crowd of the evening, and the fact that both Khushi had been missing for a fair bit of it, it had completely escaped her that Khushi had not met Shyam!
'Arnav!' she exclaimed, as he made his way towards them. 'Did you not introduce Miss Khushi to Shyam?'
He stopped short. For a short space of time, the world stopped for him. He looked blankly at Anjali and then at Khushi, the two women in his life who were dearest to him, gazing expectantly at him.
'I ... didn't know Khushi hadn't met Shyam,' he lied.
Khushi narrowed her eyes. Why did she feel like he was glad she hadn't met Shyam? He met her eyes, a slow blink. He wanted to tell her something. She turned away from him, torn between the need to stay and listen to what he had to say, and knowing she could hardly do that without raising some eyebrows.
The group began to move towards the door. She stepped aside allowing everyone to leave. Arnav held back, too. He brought up the rear of the group, slipping his fingers into hers, slowing her down. She looked over her shoulder at him, questioning.
He halted. 'Stay,' he murmured near her ear.
She looked at him, wide-eyed, her indecision clear on her face. He shook his head. He knew he couldn't ask her to stay tonight. Or any other night. Not until they had settled all this.
'I know. You can't stay.' He took a deep breath. 'You need to go with your parents.' He let her hand go, reluctantly. 'Go.'
She followed her parents out of the house, glancing back once to see him holding his sister's shoulder as they waved good bye.
*****
The morning sun was well on its way up the sky. Arnav was glad that he'd worn a light shirt today. It was hot. Swinging himself out of the saddle, he hobbled Shadow and walked up the the two steps to the sheriff's office. Aman was nowhere in sight.
'Sheriff,' he called.
Aman appeared from the back, for once, the ever-present hat missing from his head. His dark hair framed his face, and something that passed for a smile split it. 'ASR. Good to see you,' they shook hands. 'Come on inside,' Aman led the way down a little corridor, lined on either side by the two little cells that were currently empty.
He opened the door to an office at the back, and gestured to Arnav to have a seat. The two of them sat down unaware of how similar they looked. Both with the coiled tension of a cougar, lean and menacing, yet capable of extreme gentleness when they were with their women.
'What's up, Sheriff? Why'd you want to speak to me here?'Arnav asked pouring himself a glass of water and gulping it down.
'I got some news that I thought you'd like to hear,' Aman said.
Arnav nodded. Aman opened out a map, the one he'd received in the post. He also took out the documents that he'd put in his safe. 'The railroad is coming to town,' he said. He proceeded to tell Arnav all about the railway and what he'd been informed.
For once, Arnav was speechless. He looked at the map, his eyes narrowing in thought. Suddenly it all started falling into place. The pieces of the puzzle that had eluded him for so long. That, was what Shyam was after. A piece of the pie. Having that land meant being able to sell it to the government for a much higher price. It wasn't just the water and the grazing. It would have a huge effect on the entire town. And on the Apaches. He took in the map, listening as Aman told him about how it was now almost a done deal. The railway would happen, and the person holding the land would be a rich man indeed. Richer than he ever thought he would be.
Aman finished speaking and looked at Arnav.
For a long moment, the latter was silent, and then he looked up.
'Shyam killed Donny,' he stated, without a shadow of doubt in his mind that Khushi had spoken the truth.
Aman narrowed his eyes. 'What?' he exclaimed, leaning forward, incredulity all over his face.
'All this,' Arnav waved his hand over the map. 'It explains Shyam Manohar Jha.' He was putting it together as he spoke. 'Two years ago, Shyam killed Donny, hoping that Rudi would end up selling the land. To him. But he didn't. He disappeared. But there was Drew and Dev. Donny's heirs. They would inherit the land. And if I died without an heir, they would inherit my property too. This was an easy solution. He could take care of it. All he had to do was marry Anjali and make the children legally his.'
His nostrils flared at the thought of Shyam courting his sister, making a mockery of her love, her life, even her children, only to get his hands on the property. A snarl came and went on his face. 'He would use all of them, to get to the land. He offered to buy Circle-R property from me.'
Aman raised an eyebrow.
'I refused, of course. Then Gupta arrived, as the owner of the Box-Lightning. I think even the Blackfoot attacking them on their way here must've been Shyam's doing. They don't usually make their way so far South. And I helped rescue them.
'So he went after my sister. The son-of-a-...,' Arnav could barely grind the words out. And he got through. They're betrothed. And she's in love. And I can't tell her all this,' he almost groaned the last words. He raised torn eyes to Aman.
'How do you know he killed Donny?' Aman asked.
'Khushi,' was the simple answer. 'She saw him.'
Aman sat back. 'She knew him?'
Arnav shook his head. He told him what Khushi had revealed to him last night. 'She saw him at the Wild Bull one day, and ran. She thought he was after her. But he was talking to us. For a while she thought that I knew him.' He paused, frowning.
'Until she saw Anjali's husband's photograph. That's when she knew who he had killed. She still doesn't know that his name is Shyam - he's still nameless to her. Then, she saw him last night, and came to me. She didn't know that he wasn't just a guest, he was the guest of honor.' He'd been staring at the map as if it had all the answers. He huffed, frustrated.
'That's why she was with me, last night,' he finished, raising his red-rimmed eyes to look at Aman.
Aman leaned back till his chair rocked on its back legs. His elbows rested on the arms and his fingers steepled under his chin.
The two men regarded each other silently.
'You can't tell Miss Anjali,' he said, finally. 'Not yet, anyway.'
Arnav nodded. He'd not slept the night before, knowing what he knew. What Aman told him only served to confirm his suspicions, and remove any lingering traces of doubt that he might have had. Outside the morning in Yerba was stretching its arms. Inside, the two men sat, deep in their dark thoughts.
'Perhaps it's best if you go back to the Circle-R now,' Aman finally spoke. 'We need to find out exactly what he is planning.'
'What about Khushi?' Arnav asked.
'As long as Shyam doesn't know that she is the one who saw him,' Aman left the sentence hanging. Khushi was safe as long as Shyam was ignorant. Since only the two of them knew about it, they would keep it quiet for now. It would take more than just Khushi's words to get Shyam into jail. 'I'll see what else I can dig up,' he promised.
Arnav agreed. His hat was hanging behind him by its straps. He pulled it forward, on top of his head. He had a family to take care of, and a woman, too. He needed to get back home.
He strode out of the office, and leapt onto Shadow's back, gathering the reins in his hands. The big grey obediently broke into a trot. They turned away from Yerba, towards the trail to Circle-R.
****
Shyam had woken up late. Something had been niggling at him all night. He'd slept fitfully and now was awake before he wanted to. Something undone. Something unsaid. He wished he knew what it was.
Dragging himself into the washroom, he washed and shaved, pulling on a fresh set of clothes. It was too hot to wear black, so he wore a pair of worn jeans and a cotton shirt the color of dirt. The only concession he made to his usual color was the hat.
Stepping out on the verandah, he squinted his eyes against the dancing, shimmering heat in the distance. He could see something making its way towards the ranch house. This early? Who could it be?
A back unmarked coach with shaded windows and two black horses pulling it, turned onto the yard. He idly watched it pull to a stop. It looked like it belonged to a gentleman. Who traveled in their own coach so far away from the big cities?
The coachman jumped off his bench and came around to open the door.
A pair of highly polished boots descended, followed by a pair of long egs encased in pale brown fitted trousers. A hand appeared at one of the windows, the single diamond in the signet ring on the little finger catching the sunlight, throwing a myriad prisms of color around it. The man emerged. Tall, well-built, with just a tiniest tell-tale signs of a belly. Dressed in a sharp green suit. He was handsome in a florid sort of way, sweating slightly in the heat. He looked around and took a deep breath, his lips parting to catch the slight breeze, his tongue flicking out. He turned and looked at Shyam, his deep brown hair hinting at the golden strands woven in between. He smiled at Shyam - a predatory, sweet smile, that unnerved more than a glare.
Shyam grimaced back at him.
El Coyote had arrived at the Striking-S.
****
Indian Idol 16
Fan Fictions
